Cotswolds Weekend – Any Cotswold Experts Frequent Here?

All,

Long story short, i have to put together a gentleman’s weekend in the Cotswolds.

I have only been there once which was years ago (and i happened to see Liz Hurley eating and ice cream) so know absolutely nothing about the area.

I’m looking for a town or village that has a good level of accommodation and a few walkable pubs. One of the guys coming over wants to see the Rollright (sp?) Stones…other than that, it is food and beers.

I don’t suppose anyone could recommend any villages that fit the above criteria please? Chipping Norton seems to be the most popular on Google?

3….2….1…. over to you!

TIA.

I went to Chipping Campden last summer and liked it. There was a couple of pubs and cafes and one at the end of the road (the volunteer inn I think it was called) was quite lively and had the rugby on and I even think there was a low-key stag do in there, but not really sure where they’d been all day.

We did a decent walk to Broadway Tower and back. Had a nice church too and is very olde-worlde picturesque.

Depends what sort of gentleman’s weekend really- I was with my wife in Chipping Campden and liked it for a relaxing weekend but if you wanted to smash it up in a load of pubs it’d be too quiet for that. But a walk and a pint, probs all good.

Cirencester is another option.

Are you doing any riding?

Broadway would probably work. A few pubs and places to eat. Good walks up to the tower and beyond. Snowshill a short way away which has some good riding surrounding it.

Winchcombe and Cleeve hill not too far away. Chipping Campden not far away which is nice.

I ride in the area a lot so know some good spots but it doesn’t sound like riding is what you’re after.

The Rollright stones is nice enough for a bit. Lovely views surrounding it and good walks. You can posh it up down the road at Daylesford organic and buy a bunch of carrots for like £15 or something.

Not far from Rollright is Hook Norton, which has a really cool and interesting brewery which does tours, and you can drink obviously.

Stow on the wold, Moreton in marsh, Bourton on the water

Whatever you do, don’t go to the hell on earth that is Bourton on the water. Tourist hell.

The Slaughters are nice nearby and a smidge less mobbed.

Stow on the wold, Moreton in marsh, Bourton on the water

Tickle on the Tum.

You could aim for the western end, Stroud, Wotton under Edge, etc. If you want a posh hotel, Tortworth Manor is very nice.

and i happened to see Liz Hurley eating and ice cream

What was she eating while you were looking at ice cream?

Chipping Camden is a nice spot. The Volunteer Inn is a nice pub with the bonus of a very good semi detached Indian restaurant. If you can do a bit of driving around The Falkland Arms at Great Tew is a must as is The Fleece at Bretforton.

The Cotswolds cover a huge area, from Bath up almost to Warwick, and across to Woodstock. Take your pick.

Ride some of the Ridgeway, past the White Horse at Uffington and on to Avebury for he stone circles (a bit busy with tourists but worth a look)

He’s not riding I don’t think.

@kayak23 – no riding unfortunately. I’ll have a look at your suggestions – thanks!

https://www.theboxinghare.co.uk/ – great steaks

Hook Norton Brewery – they do a tour

https://www.cotswoldsdistillery.com/ gin, food, cake

https://www.falklandarms.co.uk/ you can stay at the pub, great food as well

Plenty of good options for Airbnb in Hook norton as well

If you want slightly larger then Chipping Norton and Cirencester are quite good, they feel a bit less touristy as they’re bigger. There are plenty of pretty smaller places that will have less going on but feel a lot more touristy due to the size. Broadway and Bourton on the Water feel a bit artificial to me (still very pretty though)

I agree. I’m not a fan of Broadway in civilian mode. It’s very touristy. The riding surrounding it is good though and that’s why I pass by a lot.

It’s fairly different from the other villages and that. Quite formal in some ways. A big wide main street with shops and galleries and pubs etc.

I think it could work as a base for a group of non riders though as it’s big enough without being too big, very beautiful surroundings and near to a lot of other cool places for a flying visit.

Nice walk up to the tower which has a good cafe and I believe you can also hire eebs which actually might be a nice thing for non cyclists to get involved in.

midlifecrashes

You could aim for the western end, Stroud, Wotton under Edge, etc. If you want a posh hotel, Tortworth Manor is very nice.

Tortworth Court is nice enough but it’s not exactly near anything else other than HMP Leyhill & the M5

I would say Cirencester is going to give you the best range of things to do/go without being too big.

I would say Cirencester is going to give you the best range of things to do/go without being too big

Miles away from Rollright stones.

Long story short, i have to put together a gentleman’s weekend in the Cotswolds.

Gonna have to ask you to elaborate here…

Most of the Cotswolds is absolute heaven for a quiet weekend away with the missus, but suspect a group of blokes might be looking for something a little less demure perhaps…?

Cheltenham has a lot going on for anybody… The Races might be a good shout. Not far from Cleeve Hill for a walk/golf/ride…

If a little more serene, then Broadway area (including Snowshill, Willersey, Chipping Camden) would be good for walks and pubs, albeit better to visit when it’s a bit out of season as Broadway is very touristy.

Or the area around Stow on the Wold, the Slaughters, Guiting Power and Temple Guiting are lovely too.

Winchcombe is nice and is very close to Cheltenham, some decent walks from there too.

Tetbury also worth a shout potentially…

Stow is pretty nodal for the northern Cotswolds and big enough for food and pub options, nice walks from the town out into the surrounding countryside, not too far from Rollrights, to the south you’ve got Chedworth roman villa if archaeology is of interest, and Belas Knap long barrow to the west near Winchcomb, another pleasant little town. Steam railway and pubs.